Giant Buddha Statue Nears Completion in India

CHAN: A huge Buddha statue is being built in India's Northern Sarnath province. The statue is one of the tallest in the world and stands where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon.

STORY: Indian sculptors are chiseling an eighty feet tall statue. Only the Bamiyan valley statues in Afghanistan are taller.

The project started ten years ago, but stopped because of lack of money. Now with the help of the Thailand Government the sculptors are nearly finished.

[Jyoti Singh Khushwaha, Contractor]: "Twenty to twenty five artisans are working on this since 3-4 years...its going to take three more years to complete."

Workers say the statue will use over 635 blocks of sandstone. The Gandharva style of art puts great emphasis on detail.

[Mohan Lal, Statue Designer]: "It will be the tallest statue of Buddha in a standing position and it comes second in height only to the Bamiyan Buddha (statues). It has been more than 10 years since we began work."

Sarnath is located ten kilometers from India's northern pilgrim town of Varanasi. It is the place where Buddha is believed to have given his first sermon in 500 B.C.

Buddha was born a prince at Lumbini in Nepal over 2,600 years ago. He attained enlightenment at the age of 35 in Bodh Gaya in India's eastern Bihar.

The Buddha left the world at the age of 80 in Kushinagar.

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